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Music : Vampire Weekend
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Rating: 
- Nothing like Graceland.
Rock critics are a lazy bunch. They kinda have to be to churn out review after review so there is no great incentive for them to dig deep into the influences of an act when they have to meet deadlines. So let's set the record straight on a few things about this act. This album does not sound like Paul Simon's "Graceland." It's not an over-produced pop mess produced by a hack who got a bunch of African musicians (Who he didn't pay by the way) to make his trite and sappy love songs sound neat and exotic (When I had it foisted on me by college acquaintences in the mid-80's it still sounded bland and over-baked). So enough with the Paul Simon comparisons!
Almost as weak are the Talking Heads comparisons. Sure, Vampire Weekend share an affinity with The Heads for Afro-pop but that's where it ends. Vampire Weekend's vocalist doesn't have Byrne's annoyingly spastic vocalizings. More often than not he sounds like Sting and the band like early Police, especially on "Blakes Got A New Face". Other influences strike this older listener: The Feelies, Orange Juice, Haircut 100 and The English Beat. There's a bit of the early 80's yen for jangle pop mixed in as well. Refreshing after the spate of grunge, faux punk and emo indie shoe-gazing we've suffered through for tooooo long now!
The band are tight and melodic and also show a capacity for baroque classical arrangements on tracks like "M-79." Their lyrics are bright and clever, perhaps a bit too clever in that the band has an "in joke" going on that it will take the listener several plays to grasp, if they ever do. This is a promising first album by a young band that deserves the hype! I especially recommend it to fans of early 80's guitar-oriented New Wave.
Rating: - nice frothy party music
I think some reviewers here are taking this band too seriously. It's not meant to be a masterpiece, folks. But it goes great with beer and pretzels. Real well. David Byrne knew what he was talking about (for once).
Rating:
- Awesome Album!
To keep it short, this is an awesome album. I find it very relaxing to listen to pretty much any time of day, especially after listening to death metal (which is my favorite). I also like very much that Vampire Weekend uses many African beats. Its different, and they use them very tastefully.
Rating: - Solid Album
I stumbled onto Vampire Weekend on the internet and decided to get a preview of what this band could do, before I considered ordering the MP3 Album. The vocals sounded catchy enough for me to gamble on them and I'm glad I did.
They have this harmonic melody that enthralls you to listen to every track, with no breaks in between. I read a review about someone saying that there were no memorable tracks, but I'd have to disagree. There are quite a few songs that can easily become singles and the other songs are still pretty well polished. The only con I could find was that there wasn't any more tracks, because I can't get enough of these guys. If you're in a need for an album that you need to relax the soul, Vampire Weekend is for you.
Rating:
- Lax Foray Into Imitation Pretentiousness
I have a theory that the people who like this album are hearing how this band channels influences they like and really like those influences. So, the concept here - mix some Paul Simon with some Elvis Costello with a sort of Beach Boys/prep club vibe is a winner. The execution, unfortunately, falls way, way short, which I guess is easier to ignore than one would think.
But play two tracks from Graceland by Paul Simon and anything by Elvis Costello; then listen to this album. You'll notice that there just doesn't seem to be much energy, hooks, or singalong material. It's background music for a really lame party you throw when your old college friends get back together and talk about their investment banking jobs.
I like the musical direction. I really do. Conceptually. But, again, the problem is in the execution. The performances sound like first take material. The lyrics fall flat. Rather than the poetic turns of phrase of Paul Simon, you get lines like:
"I didn't like the business,
But that was at first glance
Your pillow feels so soft now
But still you must advance"
(from The Kids Don't Stand A Chance)
The lyrics fail to paint much of a picture of anything. They are random comments of people and situations we aren't told enough to care about. Links aren't made. Time isn't taken to create a world we can believe in through the blending of sound, texture, and poetic imagery. It's not even vacuous dance music or fun, pointless garage band throwaway songs.
Ladies of Cambridge, the B-Side off of the Mansard Roof single is actually more alive than the material on the album proper. Yet, "A morbid streak runs through the whole of my family." So says our intrepid vocalist in a blatant attempt to rip-off Morrissey.
Morbid is nowhere near this music. Lame ska is more the flair (or lack thereof). The choice of band names, while I realize is supposed to be ironic, still makes one wonder if the lads originally thought they were forming a goth band and then, through a major case of hyperactive attention deficit disorder, got sidetracked into pablum pop disguised as 'new wave'.
Hint: new wave is long over. And those who compare this band to Talking Heads and The Police - again, please listen to the source material. Then, listen to this band. You will find stark differences. For instance, while Sting wrote some of the great lyrics of the late 20th Century, this person from this band seems to have written some words down so he would have something to sing when the band plays.
Overall, this album is all bland, washed out water color paintings of life for supposed elites in New York, Massachusetts and elsewhere (not Africa, by the way - there is not even a hint of danceable rhythm here).
But, here's my caveat... if you really don't care about what you're listening to much and want to do the fashionable thing, please, please, please, you must pick this CD up and play it at your next yacht party.
If you want to be reminded of good bands (by the way, no one has destroyed all their albums, you can still purchase them and listen to the real thing - or, better yet, they are probably already in your CD collection - so dust them off already), please, really... get this album.
But don't expect to hear anything new or authentic.
- Nothing like Graceland.Rock critics are a lazy bunch. They kinda have to be to churn out review after review so there is no great incentive for them to dig deep into the influences of an act when they have to meet deadlines. So let's set the record straight on a few things about this act. This album does not sound like Paul Simon's "Graceland." It's not an over-produced pop mess produced by a hack who got a bunch of African musicians (Who he didn't pay by the way) to make his trite and sappy love songs sound neat and exotic (When I had it foisted on me by college acquaintences in the mid-80's it still sounded bland and over-baked). So enough with the Paul Simon comparisons!
Almost as weak are the Talking Heads comparisons. Sure, Vampire Weekend share an affinity with The Heads for Afro-pop but that's where it ends. Vampire Weekend's vocalist doesn't have Byrne's annoyingly spastic vocalizings. More often than not he sounds like Sting and the band like early Police, especially on "Blakes Got A New Face". Other influences strike this older listener: The Feelies, Orange Juice, Haircut 100 and The English Beat. There's a bit of the early 80's yen for jangle pop mixed in as well. Refreshing after the spate of grunge, faux punk and emo indie shoe-gazing we've suffered through for tooooo long now!
The band are tight and melodic and also show a capacity for baroque classical arrangements on tracks like "M-79." Their lyrics are bright and clever, perhaps a bit too clever in that the band has an "in joke" going on that it will take the listener several plays to grasp, if they ever do. This is a promising first album by a young band that deserves the hype! I especially recommend it to fans of early 80's guitar-oriented New Wave.
Rating:
- nice frothy party musicI think some reviewers here are taking this band too seriously. It's not meant to be a masterpiece, folks. But it goes great with beer and pretzels. Real well. David Byrne knew what he was talking about (for once).
Rating:
- Awesome Album!To keep it short, this is an awesome album. I find it very relaxing to listen to pretty much any time of day, especially after listening to death metal (which is my favorite). I also like very much that Vampire Weekend uses many African beats. Its different, and they use them very tastefully.
Rating:
- Solid AlbumI stumbled onto Vampire Weekend on the internet and decided to get a preview of what this band could do, before I considered ordering the MP3 Album. The vocals sounded catchy enough for me to gamble on them and I'm glad I did.
They have this harmonic melody that enthralls you to listen to every track, with no breaks in between. I read a review about someone saying that there were no memorable tracks, but I'd have to disagree. There are quite a few songs that can easily become singles and the other songs are still pretty well polished. The only con I could find was that there wasn't any more tracks, because I can't get enough of these guys. If you're in a need for an album that you need to relax the soul, Vampire Weekend is for you.
Rating:
- Lax Foray Into Imitation PretentiousnessI have a theory that the people who like this album are hearing how this band channels influences they like and really like those influences. So, the concept here - mix some Paul Simon with some Elvis Costello with a sort of Beach Boys/prep club vibe is a winner. The execution, unfortunately, falls way, way short, which I guess is easier to ignore than one would think.
But play two tracks from Graceland by Paul Simon and anything by Elvis Costello; then listen to this album. You'll notice that there just doesn't seem to be much energy, hooks, or singalong material. It's background music for a really lame party you throw when your old college friends get back together and talk about their investment banking jobs.
I like the musical direction. I really do. Conceptually. But, again, the problem is in the execution. The performances sound like first take material. The lyrics fall flat. Rather than the poetic turns of phrase of Paul Simon, you get lines like:
"I didn't like the business,
But that was at first glance
Your pillow feels so soft now
But still you must advance"
(from The Kids Don't Stand A Chance)
The lyrics fail to paint much of a picture of anything. They are random comments of people and situations we aren't told enough to care about. Links aren't made. Time isn't taken to create a world we can believe in through the blending of sound, texture, and poetic imagery. It's not even vacuous dance music or fun, pointless garage band throwaway songs.
Ladies of Cambridge, the B-Side off of the Mansard Roof single is actually more alive than the material on the album proper. Yet, "A morbid streak runs through the whole of my family." So says our intrepid vocalist in a blatant attempt to rip-off Morrissey.
Morbid is nowhere near this music. Lame ska is more the flair (or lack thereof). The choice of band names, while I realize is supposed to be ironic, still makes one wonder if the lads originally thought they were forming a goth band and then, through a major case of hyperactive attention deficit disorder, got sidetracked into pablum pop disguised as 'new wave'.
Hint: new wave is long over. And those who compare this band to Talking Heads and The Police - again, please listen to the source material. Then, listen to this band. You will find stark differences. For instance, while Sting wrote some of the great lyrics of the late 20th Century, this person from this band seems to have written some words down so he would have something to sing when the band plays.
Overall, this album is all bland, washed out water color paintings of life for supposed elites in New York, Massachusetts and elsewhere (not Africa, by the way - there is not even a hint of danceable rhythm here).
But, here's my caveat... if you really don't care about what you're listening to much and want to do the fashionable thing, please, please, please, you must pick this CD up and play it at your next yacht party.
If you want to be reminded of good bands (by the way, no one has destroyed all their albums, you can still purchase them and listen to the real thing - or, better yet, they are probably already in your CD collection - so dust them off already), please, really... get this album.
But don't expect to hear anything new or authentic.